S&W Mod 22A choice and FFL question for DD

[1 Eyed Jack]

I want to buy a gift for my Dad, maybe by Christmas, or shortly there after,

Which one of these would you pick and why? your reason can be due to experience with this model, or "just because I like this one better,

On a side note I'm also considering the Chiappa 1911/22, please provide and feedback on this gun if you can also,

Let me know your opinion's, no matter what the reasoning behind your choice,

DD, it would be great if this could be a surprise for Dad, if I were to be able to purchase from you, would you be able to ship to an FFL (childhood friend of mine) that live a couple of streets away from my parents in Nebaraska? I'm in CA, something tells me we could not do that, if so I will send him the money and tell him where/whom, to buy from,

I'm going to try and post from the gallery, let's see how that goes,

All of the S&w's can be seen in more detail at, http://www.smith-wesson.com/webapp/w...2_757751_image

And no, I can't afford the buy Dad a Mod 41,

The Chiappa here, http://www.jgsales.com/advanced_sear...rt/2a/stID/276


Personally I'm leaning towards #5 of the S&W's, wood grip and BULL bbl,

Or #6, the Chiappa, as I know he is a 1911 fan and I think he would enjoy it, but I also know he would be tickled with any of them,

1 SW 22A 7.in light bbl
http://thefirearmsforum.com/album.ph...pictureid=2523

2 SW 22A 5.5.in light bbl
http://thefirearmsforum.com/album.ph...pictureid=2524

3 SW 22A two-tone 5,5.in light bbl with HI VIZ sights
http://thefirearmsforum.com/album.ph...pictureid=2525

4 SW 22A 5.5.in BULL bbl HI VIZ sights
http://thefirearmsforum.com/album.ph...pictureid=2526

5 SW 22A 5.5.in BULL bbl wood grips
http://thefirearmsforum.com/album.ph...pictureid=2527

6 Chiappa 1911-22
http://thefirearmsforum.com/album.ph...pictureid=2528

Dont know why the pics don't show from the gallery,

here is 1,2,3,4,

[1 Eyed Jack]

5 & 6,

[PPK 32]

I bought a new 22A, had it for a while, it had several quality issues, went back to Smith and Wesson. It never shot right, the frosting on the cake was when the bottom of one of the mags just fell out. I sold it, it was a very frustrating and unrewarding experience for a first new gun. I know of 2 other people that had trouble with the exact same gun. I would not recommend this gun at all. I shoot Rugers, but some people find the cleaning experience a bit challenging on those, they do shoot great, feed em anything. I am not familiar with the other gun to pass an opinion. Good luck!!

[Double D]

Once you make up your mind on what you want (I have never owned any of them to say which is the best) I would be glad to price it out for you and ship it to your FFL near your parents house. Just say the word.

[6x6pinz]

I have both and can tell you there is no comparison between them. The Chiappa is not even in the same ball park as the SW22a. Unlike the above we have 5 of the SW's between me and my friends in a few different models and all work great. I put a red dot on mine when the ladies come along and it is their favorite pistol to shoot. Handles well, runs reliably and will shoot just about anything we put in it, except the russian surplus with the heavy wax coating stuff. Of course if you really like your dad you will get him a Buckmark in 7.25" barrel, now thats a great shooter.

[Double D]

I have a couple ruger mark 3s in stock.

[old semperfi]

the chiappa had a write up in american rifleman that was excellant,accuracy was on par and or surpassing the s&ws.i do not own one as of yet but i have shot the chiappa and the s&ws,hands down the s&ws did not preform as well.having said that i wound suggest buying a mark III and removing the part that keeps it from firing without a magazine.the other option would be a used markII. old semperfi

[Alpo]

You said he's a 1911 fan. Does he currently have a 1911? If so, I suggest getting a conversion kit. This has several advantages over a dedicated 22.

First, it's parts. It's not a gun. You don't have to go through an FFL and do the paperwork and worry about you in California and him in Nebraska and transferring guns across state lines. You order it and they ship it directly to you.

Second, it's cheaper. A good conversion kit should cost less than 300 dollars. Can't hardly find a gun for that.

And third, since it goes on his 1911 frame, he has the same feel, same weight and same trigger pull of a gun he already shoots.

[BikerNut]

Originally Posted by Alpo

You said he's a 1911 fan. Does he currently have a 1911? If so, I suggest getting a conversion kit. <snip>

That, to me, is the The Perfect Gift Idea.

[45nut]

I have a S&W 22A with the 5 1/2" regular barrel. The only problem I have had was I was pressing the take-down button on the front of the frame while trying to shoot it. It locked closed one time due to this issue.

When I figured that issue out, I haven't had any problems to be concerned with. I had some FTF (maybe due to my dis-assembly button issue) when testing ammo for it, but reliability & accuracy have been very good. It shoots dirty or clean and it shoots the cheap stuff very well. It stays in my truck as part of my bug out / survival kit. I wouldn't have it in there if I didn't trust it.

My previous .22 semi was a Browning Buckmark and it was a joy to shoot. My S&W 22A is just a tad behind that.